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I just got back from my trip to Australia where I experienced lots of new and different things. I’ve been reliving the trip while I sort through my photos and prepare to post them, and I’ve realized that once again I met many interesting people on my journey and I never fail to learn something new. I’m reminded of a couple I met on my trip to Antarctica.

Imagine dreaming of traveling to Antarctica to explore the wildlife, see the ice formations and sense first-hand a continent so vast and wild that few people will ever know it in person.  Now imagine this couple finally getting to the big moment, the moment when it is possible to step off a sailing vessel and onto terra firma – Antarctica -- and just a short walk over a not-so-big hill is a rookery of wild penguins.  Yet, the couple does not come off the boat.  They remain on-board.

Why? The couple does not have the physical strength to walk over the hill to see the penguins.  They simply waited too long to go after their dream journey. They were so caught up in saving up some arbitrary amount for retirement that they delayed having fun and now they physically can’t participate fully in the experience.

On the other hand, I walk up the hill, photograph the penguins, and enjoy the rich pleasure that watching them can give a spectator. Back on the boat I share my photos with the couple who never left the boat.  The photos thrill them, yet there is an underlying sadness that this journey came a little too late in life for them to fully enjoy.

Don’t be that person.  Plan. Do. Go. Make sure you carve out the time, the resources, and fulfill your dreams wherever they may take you. I am The Luckiest Guy In The World.  Read my story about the Penguins and the Hill here:  http://www.theluckiestguyintheworld.com/p/the-penguins-and-the-hill